title: Malassezia folliculitis is caused by cutaneous resident Malassezia species.
abstract: Malassezia folliculitis [MF] is caused by the invasion of hair follicles by large numbers of Malassezia cells, but it remains unclear which Malassezia species are involved in the disease. To clarify this situation, Malassezia species isolated from lesions of MF patients were analyzed by both culture and non-culture methods. In addition, Malassezia species recovered from the non-lesion areas of the skin of MF patients and skin samples of healthy subjects were included in this study. The test population consisted of 32 MF patients and 40 healthy individuals. The lesions were obtained using a comedone extractor, while swabs were employed to obtain skin samples from non-lesion areas of the patients and healthy subjects. Malassezia DNA was analyzed using a real-time PCR technique. The detection limit of the culture method was 5 CFU/cm(2) as opposes 50 cells/cm(2) with non-culture procedures. The predominant species recovered from MF lesions were M. globosa and M. sympodialis by culture method analysis, and M. restricta, M. globosa, and M. sympodialis with non-culture methods. These results were in agreement with those found with samples from non-lesion skin areas of MF patients and healthy subjects. This study clarified that MF is caused by Malassezia species that are part of the cutaneous microflora and not by exogenous species.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Fujita Health University School of Medicine, Toyoake, Aichi, Japan. akaza.narifumi@menard.co.jp
authors.forename: Narifumi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Akaza
authors.forename: Hirohiko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Akamatsu
authors.forename: Yasuyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Masataka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kishi
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mizutani
authors.forename: Akiyo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sano
authors.forename: Keiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hirokawa
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nakata
authors.forename: Setsuko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nishijima
authors.forename: Kayoko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsunaga
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002452:Cell Count; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D004271:DNA, Fungal; D003881:Dermatomycoses / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D005499:Folliculitis / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008290:Malassezia / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008297:Male; D054892:Metagenome / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012867:Skin / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal